North Korea vows nuclear war in US following President Trump's threat of 'fire and fury'

17:11, 09 August 2017, 700

AKIPRESS.COM - North Korea has threatened to launch preemptive military strikes against the United States, including targeting the US Pacific island territory of Guam, the latest salvo in an increasingly aggressive back-and-forth between Pyongyang and Washington, CNN reports.

A statement issued by state-run media KCNA Wednesday ratcheted up the tension by saying that North Korea would "turn the US mainland into the theater of a nuclear war" if it were to uncover any sign of an impending US attack.

Pyongyang's provocation followed the most aggressive language yet from US President Donald Trump on North Korea, who vowed to unleash "fire and fury" if North Korea continued to threaten the US.

Trump's warning came after Pyongyang said it would "make the US pay dearly" for helping spearhead the passage of new UN sanctions against North Korea in response to two recent missile tests.

North Korea threatened to strike US military installations on the island of Guam after the US flew B-1B bombers over the Korean Peninsula Tuesday in a show of force.

-- Speaking from his golf resort in New Jersey Tuesday, Trump warned North Korea to stop threatening his country or "they will be met with fire, fury and frankly power the likes of which this world has never seen before."

-- The President's comments followed claims by US intelligence sources that North Korea has developed the ability to miniaturize a nuclear warhead that can fit atop a missile.